1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to ships and more particularly to anchors having pivoted flukes.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Throughout maritime history, various types of anchors have been devised in an effort to provide a lightweight and strong anchor having a high holding power. The earliest anchors were relatively heavy with rigid flukes and rigid perpendicular stocks, enabling the flukes of the anchor to bury into the sea bed to increase the holding power thereof.
The stockless or navy type anchor was the first anchor incorporating flukes that were movable relative to the anchor shank. However, the flukes of the navy type anchor were heavy and thus the anchor was used only on large ships. The concept of a movable fluke anchor led to the development of the wishbone anchor as well as the plow anchor.
In 1939, the first lightweight movable fluke anchor was invented and characterized as a stock stabilized pivoting fluke anchor. This anchor is presently sold under the trademark "DANFORTH" which is a registered trademark of The Eastern Company. With the stock stabilized movable fluke anchor, large lightweight flukes were secured to the anchor stock with the anchor shank being pivoted on the anchor stock between the large flukes. An anchor crown was secured to the stock and the flukes to limit the pivotal movement of the anchor shank. In addition, the anchor crown was designed to lift the base of the flukes to insure that the fluke points would bury in the sea bed. The art soon realized the tremendous holding power to anchor weight ratio of the stock stabilized pivoting fluke anchor. The holding power of this anchor was determined primarily by the physical design and size of the component parts rather than the weight of the anchor. The action of the anchor crown of the stock stabilized pivoting fluke anchor required critical tolerances and a relatively complex assembly in comparison to the anchors of the prior art. In general, the anchor crown included plural crown plates secured to the flukes and the anchor stock for controlling the lateral stability of the anchor shank. In addition, crown tops were disposed upon the ends of the crown plates for limiting the pivotal movement of the anchor shank. The crown tops were inclined by virture of the shape of the crown plates to provide the desired lifting action of the base of the flukes to embed the fluke points into the sea bed. High strength anchor versions of the stock stabilized pivoting fluke anchor also included a shank stop secured to the anchor crown for increasing the load capability of the anchor.
The stock stabilized pivoting fluke anchors have been widely accepted and copied by others since the first introduction in the marketplace.
Some in the prior art have attempted to simplify the anchor to provide a low cost anchor relative to the cost of the stock stabilized pivoting fluke anchors originally sold under the trademark "DANFORTH". Unfortunately, these anchors do not have an anchor crown secured to the anchor stock for movement in unison with the anchor flukes. Accordingly, the performance of these anchors is substantially reduced since the anchor crown does not force the fluke points into the sea bed. Accordingly, there is a need in the present anchor art to provide a low cost stock stabilized pivoting fluke anchor which may be manufactured at less cost than the standard anchor of this design while still maintaining the basic design concept of the stock stabilized pivoting fluke type anchor.
Therefore it is an object of this invention to provide an apparatus which overcomes the aforementioned inadequacies of the prior art devices and provides an improvement which is a significant contribution to the advancement of the anchor art.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved marine anchor for anchoring a marine vessel having an improved anchor crown resulting in a low cost anchor while still maintaining the desired effects of the traditional stock stabilized pivoting fluke type anchor.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved marine anchor for anchoring a marine vessel wherein the number of parts of the anchor crown is substantially reduced thus reducing the overall number of parts of the improved marine anchor.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved marine anchor for anchoring a marine vessel wherein the anchor may be easily assembled in one operation without the requirement of sub-assemblies.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved marine anchor for anchoring a marine vessel having a high holding power to anchor weight ratio.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved marine type anchor for a marine vessel having a novel and low cost anchor shank.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved marine type anchor for a marine vessel wherein the anchor shank has a head portion and a tail portion with the pivotal movement of the anchor shank controlled by the anchor crown in cooperation with the head portion of the anchor shank.
The foregoing has outlined some of the more pertinent objects of the invention. These objects should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the intended invention. Many other beneficial results can be attained by applying the disclosed invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the summary of the invention and the detailed description describing the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.